2022

Subcommittee on Human Rights (DROI)
Debates: Exchange of views with Teresa RIBEIRO, OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media (tbc); Accountability for the crime of aggression against Ukraine; Exchange of views with Philippe SANDS, Professor of law at University College London.

Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (EMPL)
Debates: Exchange of views on collective bargaining agreements for self-employed and the scope of application of EU competition rules with Executive VicePresident of the European Commission Margrethe VESTAGER.

Subcommittee on Security and Defence (SEDE)
Debates: Update on the EU’s Strategic Compass following the European Council; Exchange of views with Charles FRIES, Deputy Secretary General for Common Security and Defence Policy and Crisis Response, European External Action Service.

Subcommittee on Tax Matters (FISC)
Hearing: Public hearing on “Case studies on Member States national tax policies – The Netherlands: implemented national tax reforms and the combat against aggressive tax schemes”.

Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO)
Debates: Report on ongoing interinstitutional negotiations: Contestable and fair markets in the digital sector (Digital Markets Act).

Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI)
Debates: Harmonised rules on Artificial Intelligence (Artificial Intelligence Act) and amending certain Union Legislative Acts; Exchange of views with Maroš Šefčovič, Vice-President of the European Commission for Interinstitutional Relations and Foresight; Exchange of views with Věra Jourová, Vice-President of the European Commission for Values and Transparency.

Committee on Constitutional Affairs (AFCO)
Votes: Proposal for a Council Regulation on the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage, repealing Council Decision (76/787/ECSC, EEC, Euratom) and the Act concerning the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage annexed to that decision; Adoption of amendments to the “Draft Proposal for a Council Regulation” and to the “Motion for a European Parliament Resolution”; Adoption of draft report: final vote on the “Draft Proposal for a Council Regulation” and on the “Motion for a European Parliament Resolution”.
Debates: The statute and funding of European political parties and European political foundations.
Public Hearing: Hearing on “Freedom of Movement and the Exercise of Political Rights”.

Joint meeting of the Committee on Development and the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (DEVE) (ENVI)
Debates: Implementation and delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET)
Structured Dialogue on the Commission Work Programme: Exchange of views with Josep BORRELL FONTELLES, Vice President of the European Commission/High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.

Wednesday 30 March

Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON)
Debates: Exchange of views on the digital euro with Fabio Panetta, Member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank (ECB).

Thursday 31 March

Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE)
Votes: Proposal for a Council decision on the application of the provisions of the Schengen acquis in the area of Schengen Information System in the Republic of Cyprus; Amending Regulation (EU) 2018/1862 on the establishment, operation and use of the Schengen Information System (SIS) in the field of police cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal matters as regards the entry of alerts by Europol.
Debates: Amending Regulation (EU) 2021/953 on a framework for the issuance, verification and acceptance of interoperable COVID-19 vaccination, test and recovery certificates (EU Digital COVID Certificate) to facilitate free movement during the COVID-19 pandemic; Amending Regulation (EU) 2021/954 on a framework for the issuance, verification and acceptance of interoperable COVID-19 vaccination, test and recovery certificates (EU Digital COVID Certificate) with regard to third-country nationals legally staying or residing in the territories of Member States during the COVID-19 pandemic; The situation of fundamental rights in the European Union in 2020 and 2021; Evaluation of Directive (EU) 2017/541 on combating terrorism; Exchange of views with Olivier Onidi, Deputy Director-General, DG HOME, European Commission and Michael O’Flaherty, Director, EU Agency for Fundamental Rights; Amending Directive (EU) 2019/1153 of the European Parliament and of the Council, as regards access of competent authorities to centralised bank account registries through the single access point; Jointly with AFCO Mission Report following the joint LIBE/AFCO fact-finding mission to Warsaw.

Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON)
Hearings: Public Hearing with Andrea Enria, Chair of the Supervisory Board of the ECB; Public Hearing on “Basel III” Finalisation Package.

Joint meeting: Committee on Economic Affairs / Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (ECON) (LIBE)
Votes: Information accompanying transfers of funds and certain crypto-assets.
Debates: Prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing.

Committee on Budgetary Control (CONT)
Votes: 2020 discharges: General budget of the EU; General budget of the EU – EDF; Report on discharge in respect of the implementation of the budget of the European Union Agencies for the financial year 2020: performance, financial management and control.
Debates: Protection of the European Union’s financial interests – combating fraud; Control of the financial activities of the European Investment Bank; Follow-up on investigations of possible misuse of EU funds for agriculture in Slovakia – Exchange of views with the Slovak Minister of Agriculture and the Director of the Slovak Agricultural Paying Agency; Establishing the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism and amending Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010, (EU) 1094/2010, (EU) 1095/2010.

War in Ukraine: Disinformation vs Reality
The EP press service organises a webinar for media on the “War in Ukraine: Disinformation vs reality”, featuring the participation of key MEPs and experts.

Find an overview of the parliamentary agenda here.

Council of Ministers

Monday 28 March

Extraordinary Justice and Home Affairs Council
EU home affairs ministers will meet in Brussels to discuss European coordination for the reception of people fleeing the war in Ukraine. They will focus on the implementation of material and financial support for Member States, the monitoring and coordination of travel within the EU, the reception of refugees from the Republic of Moldova, external border control and security issues. The war in Ukraine has led to an influx of millions of people seeking refuge in the EU and in the Republic of Moldova. On 4 March 2022, the EU decided to introduce the temporary protection scheme. The objective is to alleviate pressure on national asylum systems and to allow displaced persons to enjoy harmonised rights across the EU.

Tuesday 29 March

Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council (Health)
As Team Europe, the EU and its member states are actively contributing to a wider global response to the COVID-19 pandemic with the objective to donate 700 million doses by mid-2022 through the COVAX initiative. EU health ministers will hold a policy debate around these two questions: What organisational arrangements are needed at European level to coordinate monitoring, expertise and guidance on vaccine strategy and supply? What is the leverage for strengthening the European strategy for vaccine donations? The Commission will inform delegations about the medical and humanitarian situation in Ukraine. Health ministers met for an informal video conference to agree on a coordinated and inclusive EU response to the health consequences of the war in Ukraine.

An overview of planned Council meetings can be found here.

European Commission and High Representative

Tuesday 29 March

Towards an EU solar energy strategy
In the context of the preparation of a Communication on an EU solar strategy and the ongoing Open Public Consultation, this high-level event aims to provide a forum for an exchange of views between the main relevant stakeholders. The strategy will analyse the state of play of solar energy across the EU and propose measures to accelerate deployment of solar technologies.

Tuesday 29 March – Friday 1 April

EU Knowledge Valorisation Week 2022
The EU Knowledge Valorisation Week will showcase excellent examples of policies and tools that promote the uptake of research results and science-based solutions for the benefit of all. Universities, business associations, research organisations, arts institutions, and other stakeholders have helped shape the programme by sharing their best practices in knowledge valorisation. The Week will bring together stakeholders and policy makers across Europe. It will stimulate exchange of experiences and dialogue on ways to improve investments, capacities and skills for knowledge valorisation in the European Union. The EU Knowledge Valorisation Week is organised by the European Commission, Directorate-General Research and Innovation, EU Member States and EEA countries.

Wednesday 30 March

College meeting
Commissioners will gather to discuss the Circular economy package, including sustainable products policy initiative, a revision of the Ecodesign Directive, a review of the Construction Product Regulation, a strategy on sustainable textiles, and empowering consumers for the green transition.

An overview of the Commission College can be found here; the Commissioners’ weekly activities can be found here; the agenda of upcoming College meetings can be found here; Commission events can be found here.

European Economic and Social Committee

Monday 28 March

The role of civil society organisations as guardians of the common good in the post-pandemic recovery
In the context of the own-initiative opinion on ”The role of civil society organisations as guardians of the common good in the post-pandemic recovery”, the European Economic and Social Committee is organising a remote public hearing on Monday 28 March 2022. The aim of the event is to gather input from policy makers, civil society organisations and social partners which will feed into the EESC’s opinion and to hold a discussion on how civil society organisations are involved in practice in the recovery and reconstruction process at EU and Member State level.

Tuesday 29 March

1st European Civil Society Forum on Trade and Sustainable Development
The EESC is hosting the European Civil Society Forum on Trade and Sustainable Development. This Forum aims to break down the silos, enabling inclusive and interactive debates between institutions, academia and civil society, all on an equal footing. The event will cover topics relevant to trade and sustainable development (TSD) – from substantive rights through monitoring to enforcement and much more. The ambition is to feed innovative ideas and concrete recommendations to the ongoing reflections on the future of EU TSD policy, in the double context of the review of the 15-point action plan and recent trade and sustainability developments outside the EU.

Wednesday 30 March

Initiative to extend the list of EU crimes to all forms of hate crime and hate speech
The hearing will gather stakeholders to discuss the proposal by the European Commission to extend the list of EU crimes referred to in Article 83(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) to all forms of hate crime and hate speech. This initiative is part of the EU’s response to extremist ideologies online and more specifically to the proliferation of racist and xenophobic hate speech on the internet. The hearing will feed in the preparation of the EESC Opinion on the subject.

Thursday 31 March – Friday 1 April

Your Europe, Your Say! 2022
“Your Europe, Your Say!” is the EESC’s annual event for young people. Schools from all of the 27 EU Member States, the 5 EU candidate countries and a Brussels-based European school are invited to apply to take part and one school from each country is then selected by drawing lots. The selected schools then each choose three pupils and one accompanying teacher to meet virtually and discuss, debate and draw up recommendations addressed to the EU institutions. A total of 99 students and 33 teachers will be invited to attend the event. This year, the discussions will focus on disinformation and fake news. The goal of the event will be to raise awareness of the dangers of disinformation and to encourage the participants to become more active in the fight against fake news. It will focus on helping youngsters to detect disinformation easily and act against it. This EESC activity will be linked to the youth chapter of the Conference on the Future of Europe because a European youth that can make choices on the basis of trustworthy information is vital to our shared future.

More information about EESC events can be found here.
The agendas of the different EESC meetings can be found here.

Committee of the Regions

Tuesday 29 March

12th CIVEX Commission Meeting
Members will gather to discuss the Revised Schengen Area Governance, the strengthening of the EU-UK relationship at subnational level and remedying the territorial impact of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU, to debate on the assistance to Ukrainian refugees in EU regions and cities, to discuss the Enlargement Package 2021, as well as the reinforcing of democracy and integrity of elections.

Thursday 31 March

12th NAT commission meeting
Members will gather to debate on rural policy, on the current situation on the EU agricultural markets following Russia invasion of Ukraine, on the implementation of the CAP National Strategic Plans at regional level, on the European Health Union: toward a health pact for Europeans and to present the CoR study on World Heritage agricultural landscapes.

Friday 1 April

12th SEDEC commission meeting
The meeting agenda includes first discussion and adoption of the opinions on the EU Strategy on Combating Antisemitism and Fostering Jewish Life (2021-2030), on improving working conditions in platform work and on European strategy for universities. SEDEC members will then discuss the war in Ukraine and its implications across European Union cities and regions. The meeting will also include the presentation of the Healthylifestyle4All by Florencia van Houdt, Head of Unit in DG EAC and a presentation of the “Association française Territoires zéro chômeur de longue durée” (TZCLD) with Jeanne Bot, on the association’s projects against long-term unemployment.

More information about Committee of the Regions events can be found here. The agendas of the different Committee of the Regions meetings can be found here.

French Presidency

Monday 28 March – Tuesday 29 March

Meeting of senior officials responsible for the United Nations
The meeting of senior officials responsible for the United Nations, in the framework of the United Nations Working Party (CONUN), will consolidate the work already undertaken on strengthening the influence of the European Union in the multilateral system. That is the meaning behind the Franco-German efforts and the communication issued by the Commission and the High Representative on the matter in February 2021. The meeting will focus on the merging of strategic areas of action of the European Union in the multilateral system and international organisations; and the implementation of common influence tools in the multilateral system and international organisations: coordination on the elections of leaders of international organisations, placing of staff, coordination on voluntary contributions. The meeting will also pay tribute to an international organisation established in France.

Wednesday 30 March – Friday 1 April

Meeting of Directors for Fisheries
The heads of administrations for fisheries and aquaculture in each of the EU Member States will come together in Bordeaux to discuss the future of the Common Fisheries Policy. Representatives of the European Commission and the Council of the European Union will also be invited to attend.

Thursday 31 March

Meeting of Continental Europe directors
This meeting will bring together the directors responsible for Continental Europe: The Balkans, Eastern Europe, Central Asia and the Caucasus, of the 27 Member States of the European Union.

The agenda of the French Presidency of the Council of the EU can be found here.

European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights

Monday 28 March

Workshop on business and human rights
What is the future for business and human rights? This will be one of the issues covered during the international Council of Europe workshop on business and human rights. FRA will draw from its access to remedies report. The workshop falls under the framework of the Italian Presidency of the Council of Europe. The other session will focus on national experiences.

FRA Director to address Human Dimension Meeting on the human rights impact of the war in Ukraine
FRA’s Director will be a keynote speaker at the OSCE Supplementary Human Dimension Meeting. He will draw on FRA’s findings from the border visits. This includes information on the challenges people fleeing Ukraine face related to accommodation and reception, as well as issues like trafficking and child protection. The event will focus on international cooperation to address violations of international humanitarian and human rights law, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It will take place in Vienna.

Tuesday 29 March

Advancing the EU’s work on age equality
FRA will take part in an online working meeting on age equality. The UN’s Office for Human Rights in Europe, the World Health Organisation, AGE Platform Europe and the European Youth Forum jointly organise the event. It brings together EU stakeholders to exchange ideas on how to use the EU policy and legal framework on ageing and youth to advance age equality and fight ageism. FRA will contribute to the discussions on how the fight against ageism can be embedded within existing EU equality strategies and action plans. To address the fundamental rights implications of growing older in the digital age, FRA will initiate this year new research on age-related inequalities from a fundamental rights perspective.

Webinar on access to justice and business and human rights
The European Law Institute (ELI) will run a webinar on access to justice, effective remedies, and business and human rights. FRA will join the discussions with input from its access to remedies report. At the event, ELI will also summarise its recommendations on access to justice and effective remedies in the context of business and human rights outlined in its recent report.

Information on upcoming FRA events can be found here.

European Central Bank

Thursday 31 March

Enria presents the ECB Annual Report to the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs of the European Parliament
Andrea Enria will present the ECB Annual Report on supervisory activities 2021 to the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) of the European Parliament.

More information about ECB events can be found here.

Council of Europe

Monday 28 March

Launch of the “Block the Hatred. Share the Love!” initiative
A joint Council of Europe and European Union awareness raising initiative “Block the Hatred. Share the Love!”, will be officially launched in Bosnia and Herzegovina under the action “Promotion of diversity and equality in Bosnia and Herzegovina”.

Wednesday 30 March

Event on “Age assessment of unaccompanied migrant children: promoting a human rights and multidisciplinary approach”
An event on “Age assessment of unaccompanied migrant children: promoting a human rights and multidisciplinary approach” will be organised jointly by Italy’s National Institute for Health, Migration and Poverty (INMP) and the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary General on Migration and Refugees (SRSG), in the framework of the Italian Presidency of the Committee of Ministers.

Friday 1 April

Conference of Ministers of Culture
The Steering Committee for Culture, Heritage and Landscape and the Italian Ministry of Culture will organise a Conference of Ministers of Culture in the framework of the Italian Presidency of the Committee of Ministers. The conference will examine in depth the challenges and opportunities of digital technologies for European cultural policy, cultural heritage standards and audio-visual practices in two main sessions.

Friday 1 April – Monday 4 April

SERBIA – Presidential and early parliamentary elections – legal assistance to the PACE election observation mission
Representatives of the Venice Commission accompanied the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) election observation delegation to advise on the legal framework of the presidential and early parliamentary elections of 3 April 2022 in Serbia. The delegation observes the opening, voting and counting processes of the elections.

Find an overview of Council of Europe events here; the PACE diary here; the Congress calendar of events here; information on forthcoming judgments here; the calendar of hearings here; information on Venice Commission events here; the agenda of the Commissioner of Human Rights here; and the Chairmanship agenda here.

OSCE Parliamentary Assembly

Monday 28 March – Tuesday 29 March

International cooperation to address violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law: Supplementary Human Dimension Meeting I
The event will provide a platform for an exchange of views among OSCE participating States, OSCE institutions and other executive structures and international organisations, civil society and other stakeholders on international cooperation to address violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law. It will include three working sessions, each with a separate focus.

Wednesday 30 March

Realising gender equality in parliament: Transforming institutions, delivering for all women and men
In 2020 and early 2021, ODIHR conducted a study on best practices and lessons learned on gender sensitivity of national parliaments in the OSCE region. This research, conducted in collaboration with the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly and 46 national parliaments of OSCE participating States, led to the development of the document “Realising Gender Equality in Parliament: A Guide for Parliaments in the OSCE Region”. This practical guide was published in December 2021. It is intended to assist all parliamentary actors in transforming these institutions into gender-sensitive parliaments. The event is organised to launch this new ODIHR publication. It will also provide a platform for sharing best practices, lessons learned and innovations on how national parliaments mainstream gender equality in their composition, structures, operations, working methods and daily work, to be able to achieve gender-responsive policy outcomes.

Thursday 31 March

Realising Gender Equality in Parliament: Expert Meeting for International Stakeholders and Academia
ODIHR is organising this expert meeting between representatives of international organisations and leading researchers to discuss innovative approaches to ‘gender-sensitive parliaments.’ This aims to promote the exchange of experiences, on how research is conducted and what best practices, experiences and innovations exist to support parliaments to work better for all women and men in all their diversity.

More information can be found here.

National Elections

Sunday 3 April

Hungary: Parliament elections and Referendum
Parliamentary elections will be held in Hungary on 3 April 2022 to elect the National Assembly, coinciding with a referendum.

Serbia: General elections
General elections will be held in Serbia on 3 April 2022 to elect both the president and members of the National Assembly.

Up to Date.

News > Weekly European Agenda | 28/03/2022

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Weekly European Agenda | 28/03/2022

28 March – 3 April 2022

Institutional Agendas

European Parliament

Council of Ministers

European Commission and High Representative

European Economic and Social Committee

Committee of the Regions

French Presidency

European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights

European Central Bank

Council of Europe

OSCE Parliamentary Assembly

National Elections

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